Deploying Marines say goodbye to loved ones

Lance Cpl. Jerry McKenney kisses a loved one as she lays back on his pack in the back of a pick-up truck, wearing his hat while waiting for him and about 150 Marines from Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 264, Marine Aircraft Group 26, to depart Saturday for a deployment to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

Don Bryan/The Daily News

By LINDELL KAY - Daily News Staff

Published: Saturday, January 12, 2013 at 05:25 PM.

A day after celebrating having all seven Osprey units home for the first time, one of those units shipped out of New River Air Station on Saturday.

With the cooperation of warm weather, the Marines and their loved ones sat on pickup tailgates and chatted quietly amongst themselves in their last few moments together.

One group of friends ate from boxes of Bojangles while sharing stories and laughter.

Other Marines spent the time alone with their wives and girlfriends. Many were kissing and whispering to each other.

Lance Cpl. Jerry McKenney sat in a truck bed surrounded by members of his local motorcycle club.

“We’re the Notorious Suspects,” one of them said, showing off the logo on his leather jacket that matched all the others.

McKenney laughed and said their club promoted motorcycle safety awareness. He said this was his first deployment and planned on being safe in Afghanistan as well.

Parked next to them, Cpl. Horace Nelson was spending time with his two children, Jayden, 7, and Hayley, 2, and going over last minute details with his wife Atasha.

This was Nelson’s first deployment as well.

“We’ve been training in New Mexico and Twentynine Palms, we’re ready,” he said.

On the home front, Atasha said she has been preparing to take over as head of house.

“I do it all now anyway,” she said, joking with her husband.

When asked what the kids planned to do without their daddy for eight months, their mother answered “school” while Jayden simultaneously answered “video games.”

Nelson, an Osprey crew chief, said he told his recruiter he wanted something fun and exciting as well as something that would help him land a job after the Corps.

“It’s been fun and it’s about to get exciting,” he said.

His squadron, part of Marine Aircraft Group 26, pilot, crew, and maintain the MV-22B Osprey which provides assault support to combat troops, supplies and equipment during amphibious operations. They will spend from now until August in Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

On Friday the squadron flew over Jacksonville and commemorated the first time all MV-22B Osprey squadrons from MAG-26 were home aboard MCAS New River at the same time.

“This rare occasion was a fleeting moment, as the deployment of VMM-264 will end the very short period of time that all MV-22B Osprey squadrons from MAG-26 were home together,” said 1st Lt. Kristin Dalton, a spokeswoman for the New River Air Station.

As tour buses arrived to transport the Marines on the first leg of their long journey half way around the world, Sgt. Bryan Pfeiffer said goodbye to his wife Stacey and his two young sons Shawn, 7, and Tyler, 2.

Pfeiffer has been stationed in Japan, but hasn’t deployed before. He was anxious about leaving his family, but accepting of his duty.

“This is what we do,” he said of the Corps. About his family he added, “It’s a new chapter in our lives.”

Contact Daily News Senior Reporter Lindell Kay at 910-219-8455 or lindell.kay@jdnews.com. Follow him on Twitter and friend him on Facebook @ 1lindell.